The invention relates to a method and a system for monitoring the operational state of a pump.
In modern aircraft, a large number of pumps are installed. For example, in the various central hydraulic systems present on board an aircraft and used, inter alia, for supplying the landing gear actuating device or the control surfaces of the primary flight controls, pumps are usually employed to convey hydraulic fluid through the lines of the hydraulic systems. Moreover, cooling systems, employed for cooling heat-loaded aircraft components, air conditioning systems, water supply systems and other aircraft systems may also be equipped with pumps. At present, pumps employed in aircraft are usually tested for faults on special test stands, and where necessary repaired, exclusively in the dismounted state according to methods specified by the manufacturer. However, a pump is generally dismounted and checked only if a faulty operation or even a system failure has already been detected for the system equipped with the pump. A faulty operation or a failure of a relevant aircraft system, however, generally requires immediate and thus not plannable checking and where necessary repair of the system. This may result in disruptions to the service of the aircraft, in particular flight delays or flight cancellations and thus increased costs.